Fonda to Sell 'Easy Rider' Loot

Ruby slippers, Maltese Falcon, Spider-Man costume have all disappeared

(NEWSER) - Important things vanish in movies all the time—ghosts, ninjas, starlets' clothing. But what happens to important props that may have aftermarket value? Quite often, they go missing. Mental Floss lists seven iconic movie props that mysteriously disappeared:

• The Easy Rider motorcycle: Two copies of each bike in the counterculture classic existed, but three of the four were stolen and presumably sold for parts. Peter Fonda's Captain America model survived and is at the National Motorcycle Museum in Anamosa, Iowa.

Friends, family, and locals attend memorial Mass

(NEWSER) - Mourners including Jack Nicholson and Val Kilmer remembered Dennis Hopper yesterday at his memorial Mass. The actor was laid to rest in New Mexico, where he first went in 1969 while scouting locations for Easy Rider and lived for 12 years. Nicholson, who acted alongside Hopper in Easy Rider, called him “an all-around guy,” the AP reports. More»

Critics return again and again to 'Easy Rider'

(NEWSER) - A sampling of lines from the obituaries of Dennis Hopper, who died today at age 74.

• Susan Wloszczyna, USA Today : "As buckskin-draped Billy and star-spangled Wyatt, he and Peter Fonda became hippie-era icons as stoner cowboys in search of America atop heavy-metal steeds in 1969's Easy Rider."
• Kiran Aditham, MediaBistro : Yeah, he personified the 1960s counterculture in Easy Rider and "creeped us the hell out" in Blue Velvet, but don't forget he provided "one of the best monologues in film history in True Romance." (Click through for the link.)

He'd been suffering from prostate cancer

(NEWSER) - Dennis Hopper has died from complications of prostate cancer, a friend tells Reuters . The 74-year-old, who made his name by starring in and directing the 1969 cult hit Easy Rider, died this morning at his home in Venice, California. Other memorable roles included those in Rebel Without a Cause, Blue Velvet, Apocalypse Now, and Hoosiers. As his illness progressed, Hopper had unfortunately become embroiled in a nasty divorce fight that pitted his daughter against his wife. More»

Battling cancer, actor appears frail but happy

(NEWSER) - Dennis Hopper received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame today, appearing weak from his battle with terminal prostate cancer but pleased with the honor. "I just want to thank you," said Hopper, 73. "That's all I can do." The Easy Rider and Blue Velvet star is involved in a nasty divorce; his doctor said in a statement related to the case that he was too weak to be questioned by his wife's lawyers, but the star ceremony would be "a positive experience in every way," CNN reports. More»